Argos' Watkins shakes off kick to nuts

Argos cornerback Patrick Watkins was kicked in the place every man fears against Calgary but can take some solace in the fact that he and his teammates on the secondary had a fine game. (DAVE ABEL/QMI Agency)

That bromide being the barometer for success, Patrick Watkins’ pain quotient at the moment indicates huge gains.

Nobody is hurting more than Toronto’s cornerback after he got mule-kicked in the most ungentlemanly of places — albeit unintentionally — while making a tackle against Calgary at the weekend.

So, if he’s walking a bit like a saddle-sore bullrider as the Argonauts prepare for this weekend’s game in Edmonton, mankind will just nod knowingly. Then, cringe.

“Physically I’m not where I’d like to be but a lot of guys are nicked up. You just have to know when to back off a bit and when to put on the gas. Football is just a physical game and it demands a lot from a body,” mused Watkins, who remained behind in Calgary to catch up on lost sleep and rest the wounds of war, while several team-mates hit the trails for sight-seeing in Lake Louise.